Your Favorite Bluegill (Bream) Fiy.

[feathers5 0]

 

To everyone reading, BreamBuster asked me if I wanted to join. Instead of explaining in PM, I'd figured I do it here.

 

BB ... I'd consider this one, actually I WANT to do this one.

<I haven't tied for a swap since they were ... less controlled. I did a couple and both ended with late deliveries and such. So I just quit them.>

However, your timing is off. I don't have the materials with me to tie my favorite "go-to" fly here in my hotel. I'll only be home for one week this month and one week in March. I would be doing Wife a serious wrong if I spent any of that time tying flies.

 

I hope you understand. I would've tied up some "Panfish Attractors".

 

Hook: size 8 or 6 straight shank/hook eye

Thread: pink is my most productive color

Eyes: bead chain ... go larger, rather than smaller ... I think that shiny part is one of the triggers

Tail: FTD Northern Lights (blue/silver) or similar.

Body: dubbed with fine tan/beige dubbing wrapped tightly.

Wing: (most important part, I believe) Raccoon tail ... the light/dark band part.

 

Is this your favorite gill fly? Just curious.

[mikechell 0]

 

... my favorite "go-to" fly ...

"Panfish Attractors".

 

Is this your favorite gill fly? Just curious.

Yep ... I catch more fish, and more different kinds of fish, with this fly than with any other fly I tie or have tried.

[vicrider 0]

So I've attempting to find some uses for the fuzzy foam I bought some time ago and came up with these. Kind of a spinoff of the bluegill bully pattern. Very light weighted hoping for a slow, enticing sink

 

And for those who like to catch two at a time or fish a fixed depth just hang it from this floater.

[mikechell 0]

I like the hopper !!!

[Flicted 0]

I always have to start with saying that if you match the hatch to whatever they are likely feeding on, you will be more successful. That's one main reason I never say I have a favorite or a "go-to" fly. The thing about bluegill (at least in the North and Midwest, is they are not picky at all. My favorite bluegill fly is what I have on hand. I will say that when I'm fishing the spawn in 1-3 feet of water, I usually go to an Elk Hair Caddis or Royal Griffith's Gnat because they float well. Any nymph seems to work as good as the next. If you don't know what they feed on and would like to go random, go with contrasting colors and the buggier the better, but that's mainly to catch their attention.

[breambuster 0]

Flicted, you are correct about bluegills being easy to catch if you are talking about the "Dinks." The smaller bluegill are very easy to catch. They will hit almost everything. But the larger bluegill are another story. They are very hard to find and even if you find them, fooling them into hitting is very difficult.

 

Woodenlegs, your flies have arrived, and they are very nice. This is a great pattern that I'm not sure I've seen before. Thanks.

 

Take care

 

BB

[Flicted 0]

I will agree that outside the spawning window and pre-spawn, the big ones are harder to find than the dinks. But once you learn a lake or pond, you will know where to look. And once you find the big ones, they arent very selective at all.

[tjm 0]

Flicted, How do you think the big bream act in a stream?

 

Maybe there just aren't that many but they seem more difficult than bass to me. And where I have released a big 'gill I never catch it again.

[mikechell 0]

And once you find the big ones, they aren't very selective at all.

Then you haven't truly found, "the big ones".

[Flicted 0]

I've never caught a gill in a stream so I wouldn't know. I caught few crappie in rivers in Mississippi when I lived down there, a few dink gills in brackish bay water, but never have caught gills in streams.

 

As for the "big ones" discussion, you may have me beat. In Nebraska and Minnesota, a big one is 10". Down south where critters never stop growing, I imagine you have much bigger brim, bream, stump knockers, "perch", shell crackers than I will ever see. There are lakes in the sandhills of Nebraska that they are grooming to be trophy gill lakes and they grow them over 10 up there. In my local lakes around Omaha, 9" are big and 10" are special.

[fishingbobnelson 0]

My TBD has been determined and it it the Bristleback Nymph. New pattern to me, but looks like a Bluegill getter for sure.

[flytire 0]

flies are in the mail

[breambuster 0]

Vicrider’s flies arrived today, and they are NICE. You all get to double dip with this set. You get 2 flies, and both look like productive patterns, for the price of one.

 

BB

[vicrider 0]

No BB, that is one fly. I just didn't drop the leader from the hopper to the nymph because the length you need may vary. For those who don't double dip it is time to learn. Any good floating hopper can support a weighted nymph hanging off. Serves as both a bobber indicator and controlled depth fly presentation and often results in double hookups.

 

Oh okay, you can use them individually if you want and then I guess it's two flies.

[breambuster 0]

Flytire’s flies arrived today and they are very nice. Kind of a Preditor-type pattern but not exactly like the one I tie. I learned my pattern from a Chris Helms video. I’m sure Flytire’s pattern will be very productive.

 

And THANK YOU, Flytire for all the extras and for the beads. I am very excited to get these, especially the Bully Bluegill Spiders and the Damselflies. I will study yours closely as I try to improve my version of these 2 patterns. I really am delighted to have them.

 

BB